Chrysanthemum plant named `Jenny Wren`

ABSTRACT

A distinct cultivar of Chrysanthemum plant named `Jenny Wren`, characterized by its vigorous and upright growth habit; numerous small leaves; decorative-type inflorescences; magenta-colored ray florets; numerous inflorescences per plant; and good garden performance.

The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar ofChrysanthemum plant, botanically known as Dendranthema gradiflora andreferred to by the cultivar name Jenny Wren.

The new cultivar is a product of a planned breeding program conducted bythe inventor in Chichester, West Sussex, United Kingdom. The objectiveof the breeding program was to create new Chrysanthemum cultivars havingdesirable inflorescence colors and good garden performance.

The new cultivar originated from a cross made by the inventor of thecultivar Bravo (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 6,888) as the female, or seed,parent with the proprietary selection 7/GM/94 as the male, or pollen,parent.

The new Chrysanthemum was discovered and selected by the inventor as aflowering plant within the progeny of the stated cross in a controlledenvironment in Chichester, West Sussex, United Kingdom.

Asexual reproduction of the new cultivar by terminal cuttings taken atChichester, West Sussex, United Kingdom, has shown that the uniquefeatures of this new Chrysanthemum are stable and reproduced true totype in successive generations.

The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined tobe the unique characteristics of `Jenny Wren`. These characteristics incombination distinguish `Jenny Wren` as a new and distinct cultivar:

1. Vigorous and upright growth habit.

2. Numerous small leaves giving a bushy, dense appearance.

3. Decorative-type inflorescences.

4. Magenta-colored ray florets.

5. Numerous inflorescences per plant.

6. Good garden performance.

The cultivar Jenny Wren has not been observed under all possibleenvironmental conditions. The phenotype may vary somewhat withvariations in environment such as temperature, daylength and lightintensity, without, however, any variance in genotype.

In side-by-side comparisons in Chichester, West Sussex, United Kingdom,under commercial practice, plants of the new Chrysanthemum are morecompact and flower later than plants of the female parent, theChrysanthemum cultivar Bravo. In the same comparisons, plants of the newChrysanthemum are more compact, less vigorous and have more ray floretsthan the male parent, the proprietary selection 7/GM/94.

Plants of the new Chrysanthemum can be compared to the cultivar Sundoro(U.S. Plant Pat. No. 7,225). However, in side-by-side comparisonsconducted in Oxnard, Calif., under commercial practice, plants of thenew Chrysanthemum differed from plants of the cultivar Sundoro in thefollowing characteristics:

1. Plants of the new Chrysanthemum are more vigorous and taller thanplants of the cultivar Sundoro.

2. Plants of the new Chrysanthemum have more than twice as many leavesas plants of the cultivar Sundoro. Plants of the new Chrysanthemumappear denser than plants of the cultivar Sundoro.

3. Plants of the new Chrysanthemum have leaves that are less than halfas large as leaves of plants of the cultivar Sundoro.

4. Plants of the new Chrysanthemum have more inflorescences and more rayflorets than plants of the cultivar Sundoro.

5. Plants of the new Chrysanthemum have smaller inflorescences andsmaller ray florets than plants of the cultivar Sundoro.

6. The abaxial surface of the ray florets of the new Chrysanthemum islight pink whereas the abaxial surface of the ray florets of thecultivar Sundoro is light orange.

7. Plants of the new Chrysanthemum have longer peduncles than plants ofthe cultivar Sundoro.

A detailed comparison of plants of the new Chrysanthemum and thecultivar Sundoro appears in Chart A at the end of the specification.

The accompanying colored photographs illustrate the overall appearanceof the new cultivar, showing the colors as true as it is reasonablypossible to obtain in colored reproductions of this type.

The first photograph comprises a top perspective view of a typicalflowering 16.5-cm container of `Jenny Wren` with one cutting in thecontainer.

The second photograph comprises a close-up view of five leaves atdifferent stages of development and a fully opened inflorescence.Foliage and floret colors in the photographs may appear different fromthe actual colors due to light reflectance.

In the following description, color references are made to The RoyalHorticultural Society Colour Chart except where general terms ofordinary dictionary significance are used. The following observationsand measurements describe plants grown in Oxnard, Calif., undercommercial practice in a glass-covered greenhouse with average nighttemperatures of 18C, average day temperatures of 30C, and light levelsof 2,000 (cloudy conditions) to 9,000 (sunny conditions) footcandles.

After sticking unrooted cuttings of the new cultivar, plants received 4weeks of long day/short nights followed by short day/long nights untilflowering. Measurements and numerical values represent ranges oraverages for six typical flowering plants.

Botanical classification: Dendranthema grandiflora cultiver Jenny Wren.

Commercial classification: Garden chrysanthemum.

Parentage:

Female, or seed, parent.--Dendranthema grandiflora cultivar Bravo (U.S.Plant Pat. No. 6,888).

Male, or pollen, parent.--Dendranthema grandiflora proprietary selection7/GM/94.

Propagation:

Type.--Terminal tip cuttings.

Time to rooting.--10 to 12 days with soil temperatures of 20C.

Rooting habit.--Fine, fibrous and well-branched.

Plant description:

Appearance.--Perennial herbaceous garden plant. Vigorous and rapidgrowth rate. Stems upright, uniform habit and freely branching.

Plant height.--About 26 cm.

Lateral branch length.--About 23 cm.

Quantity of lateral branches after removal of apical meristem.--About 3.

Stem color.--147D.

Foliage description.--Number of leaves per plant: About 100. Number ofleaves per lateral branch: About 34. Leaf arrangement: Alternate. Leafsize, fully expanded: Length: About 1.9 cm. Width: About 1.6 cm. Leafapex: Rounded, slightly apiculate. Leaf base: Attenuate. Leaf margin:Palmately lobed. Leaf texture: Abaxial and adaxial surfaces slightlypubescent, smooth and dull. Veins prominent on abaxial surface. Petiolelength: About 2.5 cm. Color: Young foliage abaxial surface: 137A. Youngfoliage abaxial surface: 147B. Fully expanded foliage adaxial surface:147A. Fully expanded foliage abaxial surface: 147B. Venation abaxialsurface: 147C. Venation adaxial surface: 147C. Petiole: 147C.

Flowering description:

Appearance.--Decorative inflorescence form. Inflorescences borne onterminals above foliage, arising from leaf axils. Disc and ray floretsarranged acropetally on a flat capitulum.

Flowering response.--Under natural conditions, plants flower in theautumn. At other times of the year, inflorescence initiation anddevelopment can be induced under short day/long night conditions (atleast 13.5 hours of darkness). Plants exposed to about 4 weeks of longday/short night conditions after sticking followed by photoinductiveshort day/long night conditions, flower about 49 days later.

Quantity of inflorescences.--About 8 inflorescences per flowering stem.

Inflorescence size.--Diameter: About 4.3 cm. Depth (height): About 1.6cm. Diameter of disc: About 3 mm.

Opening inflorescences.--Bud shape: Spherical. Bud size: Length: About 8mm. Width: About 9 mm. Bud color: 58A.

Ray florets.--Shape: Strap-like, narrow. Size: Length: About 2 cm.Width: About 5 mm. Apex: Tri-dentate. Base: Acute. Margin: Entire.Texture: Matte, smooth and glabrous. Aspect: Flat. Number of ray floretsper inflorescence: About 196. Color: When opening, adaxial surface: 58A.When opening, abaxial surface: 65D. Mature, adaxial surface: 58A.Mature, adaxial surface: 65C. Fading to: 67C.

Disc florets.--Shape: Tubular. Size: Length: About 4 mm. Width: About 1mm. Number of disc florets per inflorescence: About 6. Color: Immature:2D. Mature: 2D.

Peduncle.--Aspect: Strong and angled about 35 to 40° to the stem.Length: First peduncle: About 5.2 cm. Fourth peduncle: About 7.5 cm.Texture: Pubescent. Color: 138B.

Reproductive organs.--Androecium: Present on disc florets only. Anthercolor: 3A. Pollen: Moderate, 3A in color. Gynoecium: Present on both rayand disc florets. Style color: 154C.

Disease resistance: No known Chrysanthemum diseases observed to date onplants grown under commercial greenhouse conditions.

Seed production: Seed production has not been observed.

                  CHART A                                                         ______________________________________                                        CHARACTERISTIC    `JENNY WREN`                                                                              `SUNDORO`                                       ______________________________________                                        PLANT HEIGHT      About 26 cm About 23 cm                                     LATERAL STEM LENGTH                                                                             About 23 cm About 20 cm                                     GROWTH RATE       Rapid       Moderate                                        VIGOR             High        Moderate                                        QUANTITY OF LEAVES PER                                                                          About 100   About 45                                        PLANT                                                                         QUANTITY OF LEAVES PER                                                                          About 34    About 15                                        LATERAL BRANCH                                                                LEAF LENGTH       About 1.9 cm                                                                              About 4.4 cm                                    LEAF WIDTH        About 1.6 cm                                                                              About 3.7 cm                                    YOUNG FOLIAGE, ADAXIAL                                                                          137A        147A                                            QUANTITY OF       8           6                                               INFLORESCENCES PER                                                            LATERAL STEM                                                                  INFLORESCENCE DIAMETER                                                                          About 4.3 cm                                                                              About 5.6 cm                                    INFLORESCENCE DEPTH                                                                             About 1.6 cm                                                                              About 2 cm                                      BUD SHAPE         Spherical   Flattened                                       BUD COLOR         58A         70D                                             RAY FLORET SHAPE  Strap-like  Spatulate                                       RAY FLORET APEX   Tri-dentate Emarginate                                                                    with small                                                                    notch                                           RAY FLORET LENGTH About 2 cm  About 2.6 cm                                    RAY FLORET WIDTH  About 5 mm  About 8 mm                                      RAY FLORET COLOR, 58A         60C                                             WHEN OPENING, ADAXIAL                                                         RAY FLORET COLOR, WHEN                                                                          65D         36B                                             OPENING, ABAXIAL                                                              RAY FLORET COLOR, 58A         70B                                             MATURE, ADAXIAL                                                               RAY FLORET COLOR, 65C         27B                                             MATURE, ABAXIAL                                                               RAY FLORET COLOR FADING                                                                         67C         70C                                             TO                                                                            NUMBER OF RAY FLORETS PER                                                                       About 196   About 150                                       INFLORESCENCE                                                                 NUMBER OF DISC FLORETS PER                                                                      About 6     About 20                                        INFLORESCENCE                                                                 DISC FLORET COLOR,                                                                              2D          154C                                            IMMATURE                                                                      DISC FLORET COLOR, MATURE                                                                       2D          154C                                            DIAMETER OF DISC  About 3 mm  About 6 mm                                      PEDUNCLE LENGTH, FIRST                                                                          About 5.2 cm                                                                              About 3.2 cm                                    PEDUNCLE LENGTH, FOURTH                                                                         About 7.5 cm                                                                              About 5.4 cm                                    PEDUNCLE ANGLE TO STEM                                                                          About 35 to 40°                                                                    About 30°                                ______________________________________                                    

It is claimed:
 1. A new and distinct cultivar of Chrysanthemum plantnamed `Jenny Wren`, as illustrated and described.